Opinion
CASE NO. 4:13 CV 335
08-07-2013
FREDERICK BANKS, Petitioner, v. MICHAEL PUGH, et al., Respondents.
JUDGE DAN AARON POLSTER
MEMORANDUM OF OPINION
AND ORDER
On February 14, 2013, petitioner pro se Frederick Banks, a federal prisoner at the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center ("NEOCC"), filed the above-captioned in forma pauperis habeas corpus action under 28 U.S.C. § 2241. As grounds for the petition, he asserts that because he is Native American his incarceration violates the Northwest Ordinance and 8 U.S.C. § 1401(b). Further, he complains that he has been subjected adverse conditions of confinement in NEOCC'S Special Housing Unit.
As a threshold matter, there is no colorable basis for petitioner's claim that, as a Native American, he may not be confined in a federal prison. Moreover, to the extent he seeks to challenge the conditions of his confinement, habeas corpus is not the appropriate vehicle to do so. Preiser v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 475, 498-99 (1973); Luedtke v. Berkebile, 704. F.3d 465 (6th Cir. 2013). To seek relief concerning those conditions, he would need to file a civil rights action.
To file a civil rights action, petitioner would have to file a complaint in a new case and either pay the $350 filing fee or file a prisoner account statement with sufficient sufficient financial information for the court to assess and collect the filing fee. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(b)(1).
Accordingly, the request to proceed in forma pauperis is granted, and this action is dismissed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2243. The court certifies, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3), that an appeal from this decision could not be taken in good faith.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DAN AARON POLSTER
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE